Don't Ask
by Puff the Evil Dragon
Summary: After the events of Akumu no Sumu ie, Naru and Mai haven't been acting the same toward each other. Now, Mai has a boyfriend. Isn't Naru jealous? (My first fanfic, written for the 2017 Ghost Hunt Exchange.)
1. Chapter 1

_This was written for tumblr user theroyalprussianarmy, who requested stuff with Naru and Mai. It has caused me to break my long silence in fanfic writing circles, and put myself on the chopping block._ _The story will be told in a variety of perspectives, which will all be separated by chapter._

 _Thank you for your time, my fellow Ghost Hunt fans. Please take the time to let me know what you think._

 _Peace, friends!_

* * *

 **Naru**

Mai arrived late again.

Oliver Davis, aka Kazuya Shibuya, aka Naru, bit back his irritation when the girl finally walked through the office door, instead finishing the tea he'd made for himself. "Why are you late this time, Mai? Surely even someone as dumb as you is still capable of punctuality."

He still expected her to get mad—to react. But instead, she just said, "Sorry. It won't happen again," and headed over to her desk, her face betraying none of the anger he was accustomed to. Because that was how things had been since the Agawa case.

To put it mildly, he didn't understand.

Was he supposed to ask her what was wrong? Ignore it and go about business as usual? Apologize? Or was she finally getting sick of him? He'd been asking himself the same questions for weeks, and had still come up with nothing. Mai gave no hints, and he kept his distance, still hoping to remind her of Gene as little as possible, and keep his own troublesome emotions further out of the equation.

Mai started on paperwork without so much as a sigh.

Frowning, Oliver returned to his office, puzzled as ever.

It had been a while since she'd gotten angry at him. But she didn't exactly seem happy, either. Her behavior was outside her normal parameters, and therefore suspect. Yet he had no idea how to proceed.

They seemed to have some sort of unspoken understanding, even though he'd never understood the terms of it. Neither of them had mentioned anything concerning her mistaken confession, and lately had been making sure they were never alone together for more than a few seconds. On the rare attempts he tried to tease her, she responded with apathy.

To say the least, he didn't like this arrangement. It felt odd for the girl to be so quiet. He almost wanted her to call him a "damned narcissist," as usual. That would have been familiar territory.

Sinking into his desk chair, he glared at the files opened on his monitor. Familiar territory? That was a joke. There'd been a shortage of that since she'd told him Gene was appearing in her dreams.

His smile was really pretty, she'd said.

Feeling the familiar twist in his stomach, Oliver forced his mind back on to his work. He wasn't going to think about that.

A few minutes passed before the front door opened, and he heard the monk and the miko's inane babble as they walked in, treating the place like a cafe, as usual.

Oliver continued typing, though with gritted teeth.

"How'd the date, go, Mai?" Takigawa's words made Oliver's hands freeze on his keyboard.

"It went well," Mai's cheerful voice said, as if nothing had been wrong to begin with. "Shinji's really nice."

Oh. That was how things stood.

Really, he should have expected that. He didn't own her, after all. She could do whatever she chose. It was none of his business, and he had no right to feel hurt. Because there was no plausible way any girl would want him, once she saw past his face.

And that didn't hurt, he told himself. It was merely a fact he knew very well.

"When do we get to meet him?" Matsuzaki said, as Oliver tried to block their voices out.

"He's coming to pick me up after work today."

Of course he was.


	2. Chapter 2

_I should probably mention that the rating is just to be safe because of The Swears. That's it. Anyway, please let me know what you guys think._

 _Peace, friends!_

* * *

 **Mai**

The hours passed slowly, with Naru making few requests (not demands) for tea. That was odd. He was almost acting like a decent human being.

The first time he'd asked for tea, _please_ , Mai'd nearly fainted from shock. And then he'd thanked her as if it was something he did all the time.

At first, she'd thought he was sick, or stressed about something. Then, maybe an attempt to show gratitude for her saving his life in their last case. But that was too far-fetched. She'd even asked Lin, although he didn't have any insight to offer. And she hadn't seen Gene since the case, so it was impossible to ask him.

But Naru hadn't even smirked at her in weeks.

Whatever. She was trying to give up on that stupid narcissist, so what he did was none of her business.

During the last few minutes before Shinji was supposed to arrive, she remained quiet, listening to the chatter/flirting going between Monk and Ayako, peppered by Yasu's comments. She couldn't bring herself to join in.

Her insides were still twisting with guilt over Shinji. When he'd confessed and she'd told him about Naru, he'd just smiled and said, "That's okay. I can wait." She liked him, but it was a far cry from her stupid obsession with her boss. But he'd been patient. He was a saint. And that just made her feel even worse.

The door opening signaled Shinji's arrival, and Mai finally looked up from her work to smile at him. He barely had time to smile back before he was swarmed by the other three.

"So this is the boyfriend, huh?" Monk said.

"A new victim," Yasu pulled Shinji onto one of the couches, sitting closely beside him, with an arm draped over Shinji's shoulder. Making sure to make him as uncomfortable as possible. "Shinji Tokiwa, yes? It's a pleasure to meet you." Yasu beamed, but the expression looked far from friendly.

Shinji tried to back away, only to find himself flanked on the other side by Monk. "So, how did you meet our Mai?"

"W-we're in the same class," Shinji said. To his credit, he barely stuttered.

Ayako, sitting on the opposite couch, leaned in closer, smirking. "I do hope you have honorable intentions toward her, Tokiwa-kun. We'd hate for something bad to happen to you." Her tone suggested many awful things.

"Guys! That's enough!" Mai pushed Yasu aside, pulling a nervous Shinji out of the way of the three. "You don't need to threaten him!"

Shinji chuckled, albeit nervously. "Don't worry about it, Mai. I understand how they feel. They just want to protect you."

"Good man," Monk nodded in obvious approval.

Mai moved to grab her things, but froze when she heard Naru's office door open, turning to look at his unreadable face. "Naru! I didn't expect you to come out!"

He merely quirked one perfect eyebrow at her before saying, "I wanted to remind you all that this is a place of business. Acting otherwise, and dragging in people who aren't even associates, is taking it a little far, even for you."

"Oh, come on, boss," Yasu grinned, glasses glinting, "don't you want to also make sure Tokiwa-kun is good enough for our precious Mai?"

"Yasu!" Mai could feel herself blushing.

"Actually, I would like to speak to Tokiwa-san for a minute, if you don't mind." The words were spoken quietly, but everyone stared at Naru after he'd said them.

Great, what was he going to do? Tell Shinji how incompetent she was? She could do without that. She grabbed his arm, turning to leave, but Shinji stopped her. "It's alright, Mai. It will only take a moment, right?" he looked to Naru for confirmation. Naru nodded.

And thus, Shinji followed Naru back into his office. Mai couldn't help but feeling like he'd gone straight into the lion's den. She flopped back onto the couch.

"Do you think Naru's going to rip him a new one?" Monk asked.

"Maybe we should go," Ayako said with a smirk. "That way, we're not involved."

"You guys!" Mai groaned.

"Relax, Mai," Yasu said. "I'm sure everything will be fine." she was about to thank him when he added, "The boss knows better than to leave any evidence."

This was ridiculous. Turning away from the three of them, Mai watched the door. Hopefully Naru wouldn't be too rude, whatever they were talking about.


	3. Chapter 3

_This is the shortest of my admittedly short chapters so far. In my defense, the deadline was fast encroaching, it was a short scene, and other stuff._

 _Please let me know what you think._

 _Peace, friends!_

* * *

 **Shinji**

Shibuya-san's office was meticulously organized, with bookshelves full of titles in English. A whole bunch of stuff Shinji couldn't read. So Mai was right. This guy was smart. Not to mention handsome, though the lack of expression on his pale face made him look more like a doll than anything.

And was it just him, or was it cold in here?

The competition regarded him with cold blue eyes which nailed Shinji to the spot. The most important guy in Mai's life. One of those guys who always had beautiful girls after him, even though he just treats them like shit. Entitled jackass.

Narcissist. That was what Mai called him.

"Is she happy?"

Shinji started at the question. That certainly wasn't what he was expecting. Oh, so now this guy was going to pretend she actually meant something to him? "What do you care?" he said.

Shibuya's stupid pretty face remained impassive. "Please just answer the question, Tokiwa-san."

And being polite? What, was this guy bipolar? He was acting nothing like Mai always described him. Besides, how the hell was Shinji supposed to answer that? Mai was still hung up over this jackass, so no, she wasn't happy. But no way was he going to let Shibuya know that. "Yeah," he said, smiling again. "she is. Why? You're not jealous, are you, Shibuya-san?"

"My personal feelings are of no consequence." Shibuya said, still showing no twitch of emotion. It was definitely getting colder in here, though, making Shinji shiver. "I just wanted to make sure you knew that it's your job. Keep her happy. Take care of her. Do you understand?"

Glaring at the narcissist, Shinji nodded, eyes drawn to the empty teacup on the desk that was rattling in its saucer. An earthquake?

"Good," Shibuya sat down at his desk, returning to whatever the hell he was working on, paying no mind to the teacup. "Have a pleasant evening."

Biting his tongue to hold back the insults he wanted to hurl at this dismissive jackass, Shinji turned and walked out, fists clenched.


	4. Chapter 4

**Lin**

Lin was getting sick of Noll's emotional constipation. He and Mai had been avoiding each other, acting depressed, and otherwise being as annoying as angsty teenagers could be. Someone needed to get Noll's head out of his ass, and, as his guardian, that job fell to Lin.

He had walked out of his own office once he heard Mai and her boyfriend leave, only to find Takigawa, Matsuzaki, and Yasuhara sitting in the waiting area. He was all for ignoring them as he looked over the completed paperwork on Mai's desk, but then Yasuhara said, "Lin, you're the closest to the big boss. Surely you know what he said to Tokiwa-san just now. What's been eating him."

"Why?" he asked.

"This is getting ridiculous," Matsukazi sniffed. "If he's going to let Mai get away that easily, he deserves it."

Takigawa was silent for a long while, staring out the window. "I know Mai's trying to get over Naru, but she's been acting oddly the past few weeks, too. I don't like seeing her so down."

"Maybe you could talk to the big boss," Yasuhara suggested, "try to figure out what's going on between them."

Somehow, he'd ended up telling them that he would try. Though talking to Noll was sometimes harder than talking to a brick wall. But this seemed to reassure the three, who were then quick to leave.

But then, as the time approached to close, Lin had to walk into Noll's office to find the boy sweeping the remains of a shattered teacup into the garbage. He looked paler than usual, and Lin noticed a few books on the floor that were usually situated on the shelves. Great. Just great. But he didn't say anything, watching Noll put the broom away, and following him out of the office.

When the two of them got in the car, however, he couldn't hold it any longer. "There were some concerns about what you said to Mai's boyfriend."

"It's nothing to worry about," Noll said.

"And I suppose the way you and Mai have both been sulking isn't, either?"

"I have not been sulking."

"Oh, really? Then how would you care to explain your recent behavior? You two haven't been speaking to each other unless it's necessary. We both know you hate making your own tea, yet you're doing it. Why? Did you two have a disagreement?"

"I fail to see how my relationship with my assistant is any concern of yours."

This was one of the many times Lin was tempted to slap some sense into his young charge. Instead, he gritted his teeth and started the car. "I'm not one of the irregulars, Noll. You can't fool me that easily. Mai's a good person. You care about her. Why can't you just tell her that?"

"There's nothing to tell."

"We can all see how much she means to you. Everyone except Mai, herself. Do you really want this boyfriend of hers to take her away from you?"

"She's free to do whatever she wants. I will not interfere."

"So you're admitting it, then?"

"Admitting what?"

"Don't play dumb. It's very unbecoming of you."

"What I choose to do with my personal life is no concern of yours."

"Of course not," Lin said, the sarcasm heavy. "I'm just the one who has to sit back and watch as you tear yourself apart over a girl. How could that concern me?"

"Precisely, though I'm not tearing myself apart over anything."

"Which explains the mess in your office after Tokiwa-san left." Lin swerved around a driver who was going too slow. "Noll, you can't keep avoiding everything you don't want to deal with. That's not how it works."

"Focus on the road, Lin," Noll said as Lin took a corner a bit fast, causing the tires to squeal. "I'd rather not be killed by a car, as well."

"Don't change the subject."

"I was merely attempting to think of my parents. Don't you tell me I should do that more often? That was a red light, by the way."

"You're avoiding it again."

"Avoiding what?"

"You've been acting oddly toward Mai since we got back."

"The police are heavy in this area. You should really slow down."

"Damn it, Oliver!" Lin only pressed harder on the accelerator, the car zooming past others who were adamantly sticking to the speed limit. "Even _I_ know that Mai's in love with you. But apparently I'm the only one who knows you love her, even if you won't admit it. Whatever game you're playing, I'd rather not have to check you into the hospital again. Either talk to me, or I'm calling your parents."

There was a long silence, and Lin was pretty sure Noll wasn't going to say anything. And then, "She isn't."

It took him a moment to realize what Noll meant. _She isn't,_ as in, _she isn't in love with me_. Oh, how adorable. "Oh, really? You obviously haven't seen how she looks at you."

"That's because I look like Gene."

Lin turned to stare at the boy. Noll had told him about Gene being Mai's spirit guide. But going that far was ridiculous. "Gene's dead."

"I am aware. Keep your eyes on the road."

Lin turned his eyes back just in time to avoid running onto the sidewalk. Rather smoothly, if he did say so, himself. He'd been helping this idiot stabilize his emotions enough to prevent poltergeists for years, now. Emotions weren't Lin's strong point either, but Noll was bottling everything up. "So you think Mai's just after him, and therefore, you're not going to ever tell her anything?" he summarized as he pulled into the parking structure for their apartment building.

"There is nothing between us and there never will be, even if I wished it to be otherwise." Noll said.

This was going to be difficult.

* * *

 _Hey, guys! Thank you so much for the follows, favorites, and especially comments you've given so far. They really make me happy._

 _Lin is a scary driver. This can be seen in the first episode of the After School Hexer. Maybe that, and not just the lack of conversation, are why Ayako was so traumatized after being stuck in a car with him for three hours. It's a thing._

 _Also, Naru is one skinny, black-clad ball of emotional avoidance. It's not that he doesn't feel standard emotions like sadness, fear, love, etc, he just doesn't want to._

 _Please review. Your reviews will make my day, even if you just want to tell me about a typo, OOC, or something. :)_

 _Peace, friends!_


	5. Chapter 5

**Mai**

The movie was fine. A silly romantic comedy where the cold, aloof hero fell for the feisty heroine. Really, there wasn't anything wrong with it. But as it drew to the end and the two shared a final loving embrace, Mai was fed up. Mr. Cold and Aloof had turned into an idiot, all in the name of love, completely abandoning his common sense.

Wait, was she sounding a bit too much like a certain narcissist?

Damn it.

She'd been trying to avoid thinking about him. And she'd been doing pretty well, no matter how much the movie man had acted like such a Naru.

"Mai, is everything okay?" Shinji drew her from her thoughts as they left the train heading back to her apartment. He was frowning, eyebrows drawn together in worry.

She smiled at him. No need to burden him with even more of her problems. After all, she'd already told him about Naru. He'd already said it was fine, and that he could wait. She was trying to forget that Naru the Narcissist existed outside of work. She could grow to love Shinji. "I'm okay. Just thinking about the movie."

"Yeah, it wasn't my favorite either. How come girls always go for jerks like that? He insulted her so many times and she still kept going after him."

This was not something that she wanted to get into with him. Not now. "It wasn't realistic."

"I wish you were right." The way he looked at her, she knew exactly what he was referring to. "Mai, he doesn't deserve someone as amazing as you."

"Thank you." She smiled again, unsure what else to say. This was all unfamiliar territory.

"I mean it. That guy may be good looking, but he's a jerk."

That reminded her, "What did he say to you before we left the office?"

"Nothing particular." After a moment, he added, "It's really better you don't know."

"Of course it'd be something like that," she said through gritted teeth, glaring at the unoffending sidewalk. Didn't the stupid narcissist have anything better to do besides insult her?

They walked in silence again, and when Shinji reached out and took her hand, she didn't pull away. It was fine. Everything was fine.

His hand was really dry, but he held hers loosely enough so that she could pull away at any time. "You're beautiful, Mai," he finally said as they stopped outside her apartment door. "That jerk boss of yours is an idiot for not seeing it, and treating you as he does. You deserve someone nicer than that."

When he leaned in, his eyes intent on her lips, she drew back, shaking his hand off. "I'm not ready for that sort of thing."

"You'll never be ready, if you keep letting that narcissist stand in your way." he ran a hand through his short hair, sighing. "You shouldn't let him suck all the good things out of your life. Weren't you the one who wanted to get over him? Let me help."

Was that true? Was Naru holding her back? Was kissing Shinji really the best way to get over it, though? Well, he _was_ her boyfriend. And she _was_ getting past that tea-loving jerk. And she could already feel her face heating up."But—"

"Please, Mai. It would make me really happy." He looked so sad. What was she supposed to do?

Really, she didn't have to answer, though, because he took her silence for approval, pulling her in and planting his lips on hers.

What. The. Hell.

Her first kiss was supposed to be something magical, wasn't it? But this was just. . . cold. And slimy.

She pushed him away, pretty sure her face was on fire. But seeing his face, she restrained herself from wiping her mouth on the back of her hand. "I told you I wasn't ready!"

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that," Shinji said, his eyes wide. "But you just looked so cute, and I didn't want you to have to think about _him_ anymore."

Mai took a deep breath. It was alright, right? Shinji was a kind person. He was just trying to help. Her discomfort just proved that there was something wrong with her. "It's okay. Just. . . don't do it again. Not until I'm ready."

"He really hurt you, didn't he?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Shinji merely shook his head. "It's okay, I understand. You'll grow to love me. I just have to keep trying." Turning to leave, he added with a smile, "I'll see you on Monday, beautiful girl."

And Mai was left at her door, fuming, blushing, not sure who or what she was mad at, and absolutely hating the guilt knotting in the pit of her stomach.

* * *

 _I can make a lot of excuses on why it's taken so long to update. (I started dating the guy I've been crazy about for years, I studied abroad, and then I got married, just to name a few.) But I'm back, and I will finish this thing. Y'know, eventually._

 _If Mai seems OOC, sorry for that. I tried to make the scene fit her personality as best I could._

 _Thank you for reading. Please take the time to review, even if it's only to tell me about things I need to fix._

 _Peace, friends!_


End file.
